ed, passes to another kiln, where it is hardened, and the closed his book; 'Donald,' said he, never mind, if Janet oil used in printing burned off. It is next glazed with does not wish to play at chess with you, I have thought of a soft mineral composition consisting chiefly of stone, something better; come here and I'll tell you.' flint, and lead, and subsequently hardened, for fourteen A whispering conversation was carried on for some time or sixteen hours, in the 'gloss-kiln.' Most of the articles on the other side of the room. Janet's curiosity was are then ready for being sent to market. Others, how- roused, she even allowed herself to look round, when she ever, that require burnishing, such as fancy jugs or tea- was met by a smile, full of importance, as much as to say, cups, are coloured with a hand-brush, and afterwardsWe have got the first of a bright idea.' They collected burned in a small kiln, which gives to the patterns on their writing materials, and after scribbling over several the ware a fine golden or lustrous appearance. North bits of paper, which they tore into small scraps, and threw Shields is the only pottery in this quarter where this into the fire, they wrote three small notes, sealed and adlast process is conducted, and it is highly creditable to dressed them, after which Donald went round, and gave the skill and ingenuity of the proprietors, as common one to Christina, one to Janet, and one to Maggy, more by earthenware is thus made to rival some of the best china way of pleasing her, however, than anything else. Christina and Janet immediately opened theirs, and while Walter and Donald watched their faces, to see what they would think, read as follows:-It being thought that a local periodical in this community is a great desideratum, it has been projected that such a periodical be immediately started. Your presence and support are requested at a meeting to be held in this room, this evening, at eight o'clock precisely, for the purpose of arranging preliminaries, for the commencement and carrying out of such a scheme. Walter Bruce, Sec. pro. tem. December 20, 18-' ware. This pottery occupies a large space of ground, and appears to be admirably arranged and spiritedly conducted. The flint used for glazing the clay, and which is obtained from the chalk rocks, is first calcined, and then broken on the premises by 'a stamper,' and next ground in large rolling-mills driven by steam power. The proprietors have, besides, another pottery, of about the same extent, at Ouseburn, near Newcastle, in which the same processes are conducted, with the addition of brown ware. Fully 100 hands are employed at the latter place, giving 240 to both establishments. The earthenware manufacturers have always enjoyed free-trade, which is assigned as a very substantial reason of the general prosperity of their business. The Belgian government, however, has done considerable injury by increasing the import duty on English earthenware about twenty-five per cent. in four years. Our government, the manufacturers allege, might easily obtain a modification of this duty by threatening a tax on the china clay which the Belgians import so extensively from Cornwall, and on which there is no duty. A CHAPTER FOR JUVENILE READERS. SUMMER is gone. Now we have the long dark nights of winter, and, in their turn, we welcome them heartily. We remember an eastern tale, where it is said, that a lady, for some crime she had committed, was condemned to walk up and down a plain which was always green, and fresh, and beautiful; the sun always shone, and the clear, deep, tranquil blue of the sky never altered: everything around was in itself most lovely, but the punishment consisted in there being no change. A drop of rain, a cloud, a star, an hour of twilight, would have been hailed with rapture; but the scene never shifted. Now, we suppose were summer to be always continued, we would be apt, like the lady of the tale, to get very tired of it, and, therefore, to gratify our love of change, we have the delightful alternations of the seasons: spring, in its elegant budding beauties; summer in its richness and splendour; autumn, with its fruits, 'crowning the year; 'and winter, with its sublime snows and storms. But frost and snow are better to speak about than to feel, so we willingly close the window-shutters, and draw the curtains, and pull in our seats, to enjoy all the pleasant coziness of fireside comfort, and set ourselves to spend a cheerful winter night. Books, and globes, and dissected maps strew the table, chess and draught-boards are in requisition, the piano is opened, and netting-needles and worsted-work frames make their appearance. Such was the state of things in the parlour of the Bruces, one cold December evening, when Mr and Mrs Bruce were engaged, and the children were left to follow their own inclinations, in the way of employment and amusement. Christina, the eldest, was stooping over an elaborate piece of worstedwork, puzzling herself to match the shades of wool in the gaslight; Walter was busy among his schoolbooks; Janet was running over the scales on the piano, while Donald was beseeching her to come and have a game at chess; and little Maggy was sitting in a corner as quiet as pussy, with a slate in her hand, drawing houses without chimneys, and men and women without hands or feet, on it. Walter The perusal of the notes was just finished when eight o'clock struck, so that no time was lost in holding the meeting. All entered into the idea with spirit, its merits were briskly discussed, and it was settled that the first number of Bruce's Family Magazine' should appear on the first day of January. At the general request, Walter took upon himself the burden of editorship. Such was the origin of the Magazine, which has progressed till it has reached the length of six volumes, which are lying before us, and of which we are tempted to give some account, that a plan, combining as it does pleasure and entertainment with advantages of a higher order, when suggested, may be followed by some of the youthful readers of the WEEKLY INSTRUCTOR, who might not otherwise have thought of it. The first number of the Magazine produced a considerable sensation, although the circulation was rather limited, being confined to papa, and mamma, and uncle David, who sent their criticisms to the editor, by whom they were recorded at the conclusion of the succeeding number. There was no danger of tender genius being crushed in the bud by a harsh reviewer. The contents of the first number of the first volume are: Man-his General History, by Donald Bruce; Analogies suggested by the Vegetable Creation, by Christina Bruce; Life of John Adams, an old Sailor, by Walter Bruce; Enigma, by Janet Bruce. The Introduction we shall transcribe verbatim, as it will explain the object and plan of the Magazine in the projectors' own words-This Magazine has been begun chiefly for the purpose of improving the contributors in the composition of their native language. Each contributor will be expected to write something, however little, for each number of the Magazine. They may write essays on different subjects, or lives of celebrated men or women, or tales of their own invention, but whatever is contributed must have been written expressly for the Magazine. They may also contribute puzzles or guesses, all of which must be new. The contributors of these last will not send in the answers along with them, but will leave it to any of the other contributors to find them out. He who finds it out may send it in, when it will be inserted in the next number. If two essays or other contributions be given in on the same subject, we shall insert the best of them, as far as we can judge; but if one of them be one of a series, written by the same person, it will be put in, in preference to the other, although, if the latter be much better than the former, it may perhaps be inserted likewise. When a contributor does not send in his monthly contribution, he must send in a note stating why he has not written it. This note will be inserted in the Magazine, verbatim. Besides essays, lives, enigmas, conundrums, &c., verses will be received, although they may not be very good. All the contributions or explanatory notes, must be sent in seven days at least before the Magazine is published, that there may be time for arranging and copying them. Although each of the contributors will be expected to write something for each number of the Magazine, yet when there is not enough to fill up the number, it will be allowable to insert extracts from books. The Magazine will be published on the first day of each month, and will contain at least sixteen pages duodecimo. The contributors will receive back their manuscripts on the first day of each month, by applying to the editor.' Donald, honest man, commenced his contribution, forgetting, unfortunately, to count the cost, and after continuing it through several numbers, he relinquished it, finding that his store of erudition was not quite deep enough for such an arduous undertaking. Walter's life of John Adams, being entirely an imaginary biography, was intended as a vehicle in which to take the reader through many different parts of the world, describing everything that was strange and wonderful. Christina's papers were generally of a more thoughtful character than the rest. Janet frequently tried her skill in writing verses, but being rather of a volatile disposition, the editor found that her support could not always be securely calculated upon. We have looked through the volumes for some extracts, to give a general idea of the Magazine as a whole; here is an article by Walter Bruce, entitled 'ON ADVERTISING. "The present age is remarkable for the extent to which the system of advertising is carried on; and certainly, if we may judge from the large expenditure of money in this way, it must be a system attended with no inconsiderable benefits. Independently of the advantages which may be derived from reading the pages of an advertiser, a good deal of amusement may be obtained from the general strain of the advertisements, and the diversity of style in which they are drawn up. Some merchants, as if disdaining to enter into any details, on the assumption that everything about their establishment is too well known to require it, merely intimate, as it were, solely for the benefit of their customers, that they have lately received a certain quantity of goods. Others enter into a most minute account of their whole stock, giving a full list of prices, and, from their own account, any one would think that they were a kind of martyrs to the public benefit, or, to use their own phraseology, were making the most tremendous sacrifices, for the advantage of their customers and the public! They seem to exhaust the English language for adjectives in the superlative degree, to express the quality of their goods. It would be utterly out of the question to say that one quality is fine, another rather superior, and so on. No; the worst is superior, then you have very superior, superfine, and a profusion of the epithets, splendid, brilliant, magnificent, superb, choice, &c.; while all articles of an eatable description are delicious, nutritive, light, wholesome, and peculiarly adapted for invalids. In society, we hear of dull sales, and merchants complaining of stagnation of trade, but certainly they are of a very different class from those who advertise; for here we have nothing but accounts of the flourishing state of their business, and the warmest acknowledgments and thanks for the support they have received from their numerous friends. In these papers all friendless persons without houses may read of abundance of family circles ready to open to them, where the advantages of retirement and agreeable society are combined; or, if they prefer it, widow ladies, without children, ready to receive them, in a delightful and retired part of the country, which, nevertheless, enjoys abundant communication with the city, through the medium of numerous public conveyances, or, as the case may be, by a walk of a few minutes. Those, again, who want houses, have here the offer of a number of the most beautiful residences, which, however desirable they may be, the present possessor is anxious to dispose of on moderate terms; and while there is given, as you would suppose, a full account of all the accommodation afforded by these man " sions, in the phrase other conveniences,' there is a great deal left for the imagination to fill up. 'If you have children to educate, the advertiser presents you with numerous seminaries, or rather, to use the more dignified appellation in vogue at present, institutions and establishments for the rising generation, where 'every attention is paid to their moral and physical training; or there are a number of private governesses, who profess to give instructions in music, French, and Italian, these being prominently set forward, while all the rest of the import ant parts of education are huddled up under the phrase, and the usual branches of female education.' 'There is perhaps no class of advertisements written in fewer words than where persons are required to fill situations. There the general style of advertising is changed into a short, concise, and rather imperious mode of expression. 'However great may be the extravagance of expression which too generally pervades the pages of an advertiser, it forms a most valuable medium of communication among those who have business to transact, and is highly useful to the community at large, although it is certainly very desirable that, in advertising, more consistency with truth should be maintained.' The next page which our eye falls on contains a poetical version of the fable of the Eagle and the Wren, by Donald Bruce, which he has styled 'PASSAGE FROM THE HISTORY OF THE PLUME EMPIRE, CHOICE OF A KING. 'That birds have their meetings for matters of state, The story will show I intend to relate. Some short time ago, all the birds of the air Met; each one without an exception was there. The choice of a king-the object of meetingCaused many debates, and mighty disputing. Each had his party, and much did they chatter, Each one supporting his thought of the matter. Ill-nature and envy were raised to a height, And some of the rabble commencing to fight; At length, after getting these rioters quell'd, A sage bird, in general respect that was held, Rose up, looking stern, ordered all to be mute, Said, My friends, the best way to end this dispute, It appears to me, and the gentlemen here (Pointing to some hon'rable members quite near), That the friend who flies highest king we'll ordain; So, if you agree, we'll proceed with our plan.' The multitude shouted, proclaiming good-will. And each then prepared for the trial of skill; Every party and tribe their candidates bring, Chosen for strength and their swiftness of wing Now eagletons, ostriches, gonderites try, All which will exalt themselves nearest the sky. One after another competitors stop, And all to the earth exhausted they drop; The eagle in pride sailed majesticly on, Then paused, and proclaimed his right to the throne When out starts the wren, from the plume of his wing, And flying up higher, cried, Birds, see your king!"' Christina's contributions are generally carried through several numbers of the Magazine; here is one, however, which we select on account of its brevity: 'ON THE IMPORTANCE OF CULTIVATING HABITS OF OBSERVATION AND ATTENTION. 'Mrs Barbauld, in her Evenings at Home,' has a story entitled Eyes and No Eyes,' which very happily illustrates the difference existing among mankind in regard to the cultivation of these habits. Two boys take the same walk; the one returns having seen nothing either to interest or amuse; while the other comes back quite delighted, and gives a minute account of the many objects which the other had passed by, unnoticed or unimproved. 'In passing through life few intellectual habits are more valuable than these. True it is, that memory and judg ment are very important, but then, unless these powers have been cultivated, memory has nothing to exercise it self upon, and without them judgment can form its conclusions from no other data than those furnished upon the authority of others. They are the basis upon which the reflecting power must raise the superstructure; and while we would deprecate such a disposition of mind as would lead those possessing it to give their attention to the scenes, circumstances, and objects passing around, without obtain ing from them any useful or practical lesson to apply to the formation of their own habits or conduct, we would equally avoid those mental habits, in which the mind, without any regard to the external world, draws all its materials from its own meditations or the opinions of others, than which nothing can be more calculated to bring the mind into a state of dreamy enthusiasm. In the survey of a plant, what is it that constitutes the difference between a botanist and a common spectator, but that while the one has long been in the habit of using his powers of observation in the vegetable world, the other has never turned his attention to the subject; and, consequently, how many uses to which the plant may be applied, and beauties by which it is distinguished, strike the mind of the former, which totally escape the notice of the latter. "The cultivation of these powers is, in a great measure, the foundation of excellence in every department of science. They impart to their possessor that invaluable quality familiarly denominated presence of mind. In every emergency those of an observant turn of mind are ready; they have, in all likelihood, in the course of their experience seen the same, or at all events, similar circumstances before, and are prepared promptly to take the necessary measures in the case before them. 'It follows, then, if these observations are correct, that all should endeavour to take an active interest in what is going on around them, and use those powers with which God has endowed them, in a careful observation of the operations of his hand, whether as seen in the works of creation or providence.' We have been somewhat amused in perusing a paper written by Janet, under the title of 'DEFENCE OF OLD MAIDS. 'Some people write defences of the church, and some defences of the state, some defences of one thing and some of another, but, so far as I can recollect, nobody has ever written a defence of old maids; so that it behoves me to enter the lists as their champion. But before commencing their defence, I must give an explanation of the two monosyllables, old maid. Maid is a word used in opposition to matron, that is, an unmarried person; old maid, simply an old unmarried person, and it generally implies not only that the person is old and unmarried, but also that she has not much prospect of ever being married. Having thus explained the meaning of the term, I proceed to the justification of the parties. The vulgar opinion of old maids seems to be, that they never had it in their power to be otherwise than old maids, and that this of itself is a crime. Now, allowing for argument's sake that this were a crime, which, however, I am very far from supposing, according to the law of England, every man (and I suppose the privilege is extended to woman also) should be thought innocent of any crime until he is proved to be guilty; so that no old maids should be suspected of this crime until it is proved against them; and that, I think, will not often be the case, for the obvious reason that they are not very likely to tell themselves, and that no other person is likely to know. But I said that I did not think the fact of their being old maids was any crime; and indeed I think it is no proof of their being inferior to others, but rather superior, and on that account worse to please in the choice of a husband; so that old maids stand exculpated from that charge. Some, again, attempt to throw ridicule on old maids, by repeating those lines about old maids retiring to garrets, with cats and parrots. Now, to say the least, I certainly think that taking care of cats and parrots is a very innocent amusement, and if cats and parrots are in existence, they must be maintained in some way, and as well in that as any other. However, I can by no means justify the practice of some old maids, of coddling them up, expending that care and affection on them which might be so much better bestowed on their fellow-creatures. But I think, to judge by my own observation, old maids are generally much more desirous to promote the cleanliness and order of their apartments, than to make them liable to being dirtied and disarranged by pet animals. And how many old maids there are who employ their time far better than they get credit for! Their nephews and nieces generally have a large share of their attention and care, besides what they devote to the world at large. In short, do we need nobility of birth to recommend old maidenism to us? Queen Elizabeth was an old maid. Or sterling worth of character? Hannah More was an old maid. But perhaps some will say, the lamentable curiosity of old maids admits of no excuse; and I really think that it does not admit of much. However, we must recollect that when people have not many affairs of their own to attend to, they naturally get interested in those of others, even to a ridiculous extent.' Besides being the advocate of old maids, Janet seems to have constituted herself the poetess-laureate of spring, as that season never passes without having some verses manufactured in its honour by her, with a specimen of which we shall conclude these extracts: "SPRING. An elfin clad in green, While her robe lightly flows, An angry grey-hair'd man, Whenever she appears, He packs up all his gears, Though not without some tears, For his rights. The avalanches rush, And the ice-rivers crush And flower out-vying flower, Give their meed The cattle on the plain And every living thing, Walter's editorial duties were by no means of the lightest nature; and, from the various notes to correspondents appended to several numbers, he seems to have been pretty sharp; as, for instance, in the following-We cannot insert the Cup and Tray,' by , as we cannot make it out to be either prose or verse. Molière says, in one of his comedies, that what is not verse is prose, and what is not prose is verse,' therefore, the Cup and Tray' must be nothing. E. B. F. M.' In one note he requests contributors to send their contributions in proper time, and in another he states that manuscripts in pencil will not be received. It would appear that, besides having his strictly editorial duties to perform, he had occasionally to supply titles to articles, which the writers had carelessly sent in without any, as he threatens to make the author of the next paper sent in without a title, a public example.' On the whole, we think we may confidently recommend a Family Magazine, as a source of much pleasure and improvement; and when the writers shall have grown to manhood and womanhood, and the Magazine is given up for the serious business of life, which will eventually disperse them, then a peep into its pages will conjure up the circle of mirthful faces, and give a retaste of childhood's happy days, with all their light-hearted enjoyment. KEEPING UP APPEARANCES. 'A restlessness in men's minds,' says Sir William Temple, to be something they are not, and have something they have not, is the root of all immorality.' This ances.' of outraged humanity has reached the great heart of England, and raised up a host of freemen as the liberators of the enslaved and tortured negro! The newspaper is a lawbook for the indolent, a sermon for the thoughtless, a library for the poor. It may stimulate the most indifferent, it may instruct the most profound.—Sir E L. Bulwer. SACREDNESS OF TEARS. over my grave, I could never die in peace.-Dr Johnson. sentiment, if analysed, will be found strictly correct. One of the most characteristic vices of the age is the aiming and struggling after what is termed 'keeping up appearEvery one would be something that he is not, and have something that he has not; and this too often at the sacrifice of all honour, honesty, and virtue. The draper's boy would be thought a fine gentleman; the dressmaker aims at having the air and appearance of a genteel lady; and even Dolly the cook must have her There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark silks and feathers to be 'neighbour-like.' The same of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently spirit pervades all classes-the same low and ignorant than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of vanity of external appearance which covers society as with overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, of unspeakable, a mask, concealing the odious vice and corruptness which love. If there were wanting any argument to prove that lie within. It is not so much the mere appearance, howman is not mortal, I would look for it in the strong conever, as the means taken to 'keep it up,' which is the vulsive emotions of the breast, when the soul has been fruitful cause of immorality. It is thought a descent in deeply agitated, when the fountains of feeling are rising, the world to abridge one's self of a superfluity; and as and when the tears are gushing forth in crystal streams. 'the world' must, of course, like a great fool, have its Oh, speak not harshly of the stricken one, weeping in bauble, honour must be sacrificed to respectability,' and silence! Break not the deep solemnity by rude laughter, health and peace of mind to mere show and external apor intrusive footsteps. Despise not woman's tears-they The great man who drives his close carriage of manhood is sometimes melted to tears of sympathyare what made her an angel. Scoff not if the stern heart pearance. and drinks champagne, will not tolerate a descent to a gig and plain port; while the respectable man who keeps they are what help to elevate him above the brute. I his gig' would think it a degradation to have to travel alove to see tears of affection. They are painful tokens, foot between his country-house and his town office. They but still most holy. There is pleasure in tears—an awful will descend to immorality in order to keep up appear-me, I should be loath to live; and if no one might weep pleasure! If there were none on earth to shed a tear for ances; they will yield to dishonesty rather than yield up the mock applause and hollow respect of that fool-the world. Who cannot call to mind hundreds of men' respectable men'-who, from one extravagance have gone to another, wantonly squandering away the wealth which belonged to others, in the aim after a worldly reputation, and of cutting a great figure before their admiring fellows all this ending in a great sudden smash, a glorious downfall, an utter bankruptcy, to the ruin perhaps of thousands? In the midst of extravagance has not bankruptcy even now actually become fashionable? Honourable, respectable' men pay a dividend of five shillings in the pound, reserving the other fifteen shillings to keep their gig' and display their champagne. How often is suicide to be traced to the same cause? Vain men will yield up their life rather than their class 'respectability.' They will choose Tophit rather than condescend to sink a step in society. They will cut their own throats rather than their fashionable' acquaintances. Very few suicides are committed from real want. We never hear,' says Joel Barlow, of a man committing suicide for want of a loaf of bread, but it is often done for want of a coach. The same false pride and love of hollow show distinguishes the humbler ranks of life, and is an equally producing cause of immorality among them, as it is among their betters.' The wish to appear something that they are not, is, we believe, the cause of one-half of the prostitution, of threefourths of the swindling, and of all the roguery and cheating which deform and corrupt the mass of civilised society. -Smiles. A NEWSPAPER. The newspaper is the chronicle of civilisation-the common reservoir into which every stream pours its living waters, and at which every man may come to drink. It is the newspaper that gives to liberty its practical life, its constant observation, its perpetual vigilance, its unrelax ing activity. The newspaper informs legislation of public opinion, and it informs the people of the acts of legislation. And this is not all. The newspaper teems with the most practical morality; in its reports of crime and punishment you find a daily warning against temptation; not a case in a police court, not a single trial of a wretched outcast, or a trembling felon, that does not preach to us the awful lesson, how imprudence leads to error, how error conducts to guilt, how guilt reaps its bitter fruit of anguish and degradation. The newspaper is the familiar bond that binds together man and man-no matter what may be the distance of climate or the difference of race. There it is that we have learned how to sympathise with the slave, how to battle for his rights, how to wrest the scourge from his taskmaster. Over land and sea the voice LIFE ASSURANCE. True The time was when life assurance was thought a thing of doubtful propriety. It looked like speculating upon life and death: moreover, it was considered not entirely consistent with an unreserved reliance on the providence of God. Upon reflection, however, it will be seen that there is not only no inconsistency between life assurance and the principles of enlightened religion, but that there is a beautiful harmony between the principles of Christianity and those which united them together as a society. True Christianity required its disciples to be self-denied, and life assurance taught the same lesson. True Christianity taught them to be frugal, and, by a happy necessity, life assurance taught many to be frugal too. Christianity taught them to have a warm regard to the welfare of those who had special claims upon them-the claims of natural relationship; and life assurance also taught this duty. True Christianity required that they should not only weep with those that wept, but should rejoice with those that rejoiced; and any one who heard of the immense sums of money which had been expended upon the surviving families and relatives of those who had been assured, could not doubt that a vast amount of good must have been, under God, accomplished in this waygood, the remembrance of which might well fill them with sympathising gratitude and joy. While life assurance was in harmony with important moral and Christian virtues, it was lifted to check evils which were likely to arise even among the most conscientious in its absence. In defect of life assurance, a good man who feels himself bound and who desires to make some suitable provision for his family, has no resource but to accumulate during his lifetime. But there is no small danger of this passing into a selfish and hoarding habit, which may come to affect his general character. Hence one advantage of life assurance: it is a defence against unamiable and unchristian dispositions; nay, the source of danger is converted into a means of good.-Rev. J. G. Lorimer. Printed and published by JAMES HOGG, 122 Nicolson Street, The INSTRUCTOR' being printed from Stereotype Plates, the No. 89. EDINBURGH, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 1846. NATURE'S ANALOGIES, OR THE HARMONIC TRIAD. NATURE's analogies are wonderful, and the mind traces with ineffable pleasure the beautiful combinations which are to be met with in all her works. The gratification to be derived from wit has been traced to the delight which the mind receives from the discovery of striking and unexpected similitudes. But if we derive so much pleasure from the remarkable combinations of ideas formed by our fellow-creatures, and which are termed uit, much more can we rejoice in the charming analogies in the material world, bearing so visibly the impress of a higher hand, and which are termed nature. The theory of triads is well enough known, nor is it our object to dwell at much length upon them. We would merely bring forward a few facts in relation to their existence in nature as applicable to the two most important senses, sight and hearing, concluding with a few remarks on triads in general. What is known specifically by the name of the harmonic triad pertains peculiarly to the science of music, or upon what that science is founded-the laws of acoustics; and before we enter into the subject of that triad, with all the exquisite gratifications which it is calculated to convey to the sense and the spirit of man, be it remembered that such delight is a pure gratuity of goodness. As far as we are able to judge, every essential purpose might have been attained without this blessing. The important ends of oral communication might have been carried out independently of the adaptation of the ear to receive exquisite gratification from the harmonious combinations of sound, but our God is not the God of the utilitarian. It is evident that he has been engaged not only in the creation and preservation of his creatures, but that he has delighted in their delights and rejoiced in their gratifications. PRICE 14d. notes than do the other five; and upon this fact-a fact upon which much of the beauty and most of the complexity of music depend-he has founded what is technically termed modulation. Still, the natural progression of the seven notes remains untouched. Man has also discovered the cause of this natural progression of sound in the strict mathematical ratio in which the pulsations of the air vibrate upon the ear. Thus, if it requires a certain number of pulsations to produce one note, it demands a certain additional number to produce the next of the scale, and if, from the insufficient tension of the vibratory substance or any other cause, that additional number be not produced, the effect upon the ear is exquisitely painful; the second note, as related to the first, being what musicians technically term out of tune.' The circumstance of the ear's being so wonderfully charmed by the vibrations of the air, when the number of them is mathematically proportioned, still remains as great a mystery as ever. And this is analogous to all such things. Philosophy steps up, in such cases, from one cause to another, that is, until she finds a gap in her deductions which is resolvable alone into the will of the Supreme. She comes from second causes to the cause of all; and it is the highest philosophy, the deepest wisdom, to pause upon the brink of the abyss which must ever separate the finite from the infinite-to pause and bow-to wonder and adore. We are dealing, however, rather with facts than the philosophy of them: and to proceed. The musical scale consists indeed of seven notes, but three of these, we repeat, are so intimately connected with one another as to form what is called the common chord, the concord, the harmonic triad. Harmony indeed embraces what is understood by discord as well as concord, and it is not universally known that the word discord, in a musical sense, is not employed in a sinister signification. Some combinations called discords are exquisitely pleasing to the car, and science has discovered precisely what these combinations are; that is, what notes of the scale may be heard together without giving pain to the sensitive organ to which they are addressed. It is remarkable that the ear seems to require a sort of education to relish discords, at least that discords are the better relished by an educated ear; and, if it be so, is not this analogous to the experience of another sense. Is it not possible that the palate may be taught to take pleasure in what at one time actu It is well known that music is founded upon a scale of seven successive notes, at unequal but precisely ascertained distances in point of pitch from one another. It is not quite so well known that three of these notes have an intimate, not to say inseparable, connexion among themselves-a connexion so close as to form perfect concord or agreement-so inseparable as that one cannot be heard properly without the other two. It must be remembered that this succession of seven notes is not the result of human ingenuity, but the precise appointment of nature. The musical scale is a discovery not an invention. It is bound up in the great volume of nature, whose author and It may be worthy of remark, that the subdivision of the notes maker is God. All that man can do is to study and to into tones and semitones would seem to interfere with the fact apply. He has discovered the fact above adverted to, that that there are but seven notes in music, because by this subdivision they appear to make twelve; but every one who underthese successive notes are not at equal distances; but that stands the simplest facts in the theory of music will admit that the two of them approximate more nearly to their precedingtural scale: that which is natural to the ear of man, savage or civilised, consists of just seven notes. |